The Frenchwoman talks about her epic victory against champion Serena Williams at Roland Garros in 2012 (4-6, 7-6, 6-3). A very strong moment for her both in the course of the match and in its dramaturgy.
Do you often hear about your magnificent victory against Serena Williams in the 1st round of Roland-Garros in 2012?
It does happen (smile) …
Did you think you had a better chance of beating her on clay than on a fast surface?
This is a difficult question to answer. It all depends on the player’s form, her feelings. We don’t have that answer in advance even when it comes to a player like Serena Williams. We cannot know its real state of form before playing it. We don’t have all of that data.
This is also the magic of tennis. It’s so random. We have to do with several parameters to adapt. And in relation to oneself too. You can never be sure to have a good match either.
However, it remains clear that Serena inherently has more facilities on hard than on clay. But before this Roland-Garros she had also declared that she was in great physical shape. It could be either intoxicating or being true (laughs) …
What images come to mind concerning the course of this meeting?
It was truly fabulous. A great match. With a lot of emotion and suspense.
When I was on the court, I really felt mental and physical pain. It was already hard playing against Serena. She was physically and mentally ready to win this Grand Slam. The score was very tight. It took a lot of resources to get through.
“If you beat Serena Williams, you can beat anyone afterwards”
Where did you find them?
I had cramps in both thighs and right calf. It really wasn’t funny. I had all three muscles affected. I had also taken a warning for having uttered a rather discreet little cry. Even Serena hadn’t understood what was going on. She hadn’t been disturbed. But it was hard for me not to understand why I was taking the warning.
I told myself I’m not going to let myself be destabilized by this. Serena is tough enough already and hard to beat. So if I focused more on the referee I would never finish (laughs). I had to be even stronger than that.
That I do the best I could and achieve my match point. I have had several. But I couldn’t finish with my cramps. I was not always in a good position. Serena had obviously noticed that I was touched.
His goal was logically to make me run. I fought and I did not despair. I arrived in the 3rd set in extreme physical and mental conditions. Now was not the time to give up. I hadn’t wanted to do it all for nothing.
“Serena was ready to win this Grand Slamin “
Anyway, in this crazy context, you had already succeeded in your Roland Garros!
In my mind and in the minds of the people it was a great game. When I beat Serena, I was bound to be very happy. But I also had to think about my recovery. I was to play two days later and even the next day in doubles with Alizé Cornet.
We did our best with the team, but that was not enough for the rest of the tournament (6-3, 7-6 defeat in the 2nd round against Rus, Editor’s note) because we are not superhuman either. The match against Serena had left its mark. Despite everything, I was still very satisfied with my tournament and the emotions I had felt.
What impact did this victory on Serena have for the rest of your career?
This game helped me a lot during the season and the ones after. In a career, there are times when you feel less of your tennis and the ball. You are less confident, you lack wins, or you come back from injury. I listened to my relatives. They kept telling me “if you beat Serena Williams, you can beat anyone afterwards”. I was often told “take confidence in yourself”.
Beating a girl like Serena, such a warrior, such a champion, then allows you to overcome many other worries. This is the kind of victory that should build strength and allow any other great game to be achieved against any other player.
